HEALTH SAFETY AND WELFARE

Health safety and welfare

Health safety and welfare

Introduction

Safety and health issues are an important concern throughout the world. Employees who work in the United States and out of the states need to feel safe and obtain a sense of security. Before 1970, there were no regulations for safety hazards in the workplace, and no accountability for accidents which occurred on the job. Companies controlled the workforce and the environment. The passing of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) changed the future for employees. The law gave protection to workforce and forced employers to provide a safe and healthy workplace, plus created accountability.

Most employers are mandated by OSHA regulations. Today, safety is a serious concern, and most companies have developed a safety and health program with guidelines for the employees and employers to follow. The following is a variety of four companies with a brief description of their safety and health programs for comparison to determine their effectiveness and uniqueness:

In this assignment, we have been asked to identify and imply risk management system in a company. Being a Safety Officer is not an easy job, everyday they (safety officer) have to deal with the grievances of the staff which must be resolved so that workers can give in their 100% effort.

This essay is about a safety officer who has received complaints while the workforces are working in the warehouse. They complain about excessive heat which reduces their interest of work and efficiency. The staff has also complained about severe headaches.

As a Safety Officer, it is his duty to try and resolve the problem being faced by the workforce. A smart officer will first assess the severity of risk which causes hazards. After identifying these hazards he has to control them so that they don't occur again or less frequently.

Let us look forward in appendix what is the current situation and how the safety officer handles the complaint(s).

Introduction to Risk Management

The risk management process is an important tool to enable safety managers both to demonstrate compliance with legislation and to ensure that risks to health and safety are identified and controlled in most effective way. (Bohle & Quinlan, 2000)

The risk management process can be followed at many levels, the inner boxes represent the fundamental steps of risk management, planning, identifying, assessing and treating, while the other two boxes at the sides of the diagram represent the processes which need to occur at each of these steps - communication and consultation and monitoring and review. (Bohle & Quinlan, 2000) Let us see what each level tells us:

Level 1 - Establish the Context: Firstly, in risk management the planning stage is where information is gathered, resources are defined, communication and consultations are set up. This will not only benefit the company but also improve quality of the product, productivity and employees satisfaction. Part of this planning phase involves identifying legal requirements and deciding on limits for acceptable risks. In cases where hazards are unable to be eliminated risks cannot be reduced ...